distraught
Americanadjective
-
distracted; deeply agitated.
-
mentally deranged; crazed.
adjective
-
distracted or agitated
-
rare mad
Other Word Forms
- distraughtly adverb
- overdistraught adjective
- undistraught adjective
Etymology
Origin of distraught
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English variant of obsolete distract “distracted,” by association with straught, old past participle of stretch; distract
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Nearby, some groups of friends hugged, sobbing, distraught.
From Barron's
The distraught Bonnie was not, however, the norm for Hawks women, who were notoriously indomitable, clever, resourceful and often hilarious.
"He is, as you can imagine, in a very distraught way. He has sadly lost his family at a time which is supposed to be a happy festive period."
From BBC
When she broke the news to my brothers and me, we were distraught.
The mother became visibly distraught as she recounted how she had helped fund Thierno's journey to Spain.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
